Another Petition For Medical Marijuana Approved By Ohio Ballot Board

Just one day after the Ohio House announced it would be pursuing a bill to allow limited medical marijuana, yet another group got approval to start circulating its petitions to put its issue on the fall ballot.

Athens Attorney Don Wirtshafter with Grassroots Ohio says he’s not sold on the medical marijuana plan Ohio House leaders say they want to pass.

“It’s a very timid first step. I believe our initiative is necessary because it will force the legislature to look at this more realistically in view of the modern science on the subject.”

Grassroots Ohio’s proposed constitutional amendment would allow medical marijuana and hemp production, but doesn’t set up any kind of regulations. Wirtshafter’s group will now need to collect more than 305,000 valid signatures in order to place the issue on the ballot. Two weeks ago a national group got the go-ahead from the state to start gathering signatures for its proposal to legalize and regulate medical marijuana.

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After months of testimony, the Ohio House’s task force studying medical marijuana has made its recommendations. As Ohio Public Radio’s Jo Ingles reports, a bill will be introduced later this week that would allow a path for medical marijuana use in the Buckeye state.

Ohio’s legislative leaders have a task force and are holding public meetings to study the possibility of allowing some sort of medical marijuana here. But regardless of what they do, a national group plans to put a medical marijuana plan before voters this fall.